Barry Burkholder, assistant manager at Franklin Hardware and Pet Store, Chambersburg, Pa., checks his supply of snow shovels and other items Monday, November 24, 2014 in preparation for a Wednesday snowstorm that could bring a foot of snow to the region. less

Barry Burkholder, assistant manager at Franklin Hardware and Pet Store, Chambersburg, Pa., checks his supply of snow shovels and other items Monday, November 24, 2014 in preparation for a Wednesday snowstorm ... more

Photo: AP Photo/Public Opinion, Markell DeLoatch

Photo: AP Photo/Public Opinion, Markell DeLoatch

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Barry Burkholder, assistant manager at Franklin Hardware and Pet Store, Chambersburg, Pa., checks his supply of snow shovels and other items Monday, November 24, 2014 in preparation for a Wednesday snowstorm that could bring a foot of snow to the region. less

Barry Burkholder, assistant manager at Franklin Hardware and Pet Store, Chambersburg, Pa., checks his supply of snow shovels and other items Monday, November 24, 2014 in preparation for a Wednesday snowstorm ... more

A snow storm that could bring up to a foot of snow in parts of Connecticut is expected to arrive right about the time thousands of travelers hit the road for the Thanksgiving holiday.

The nor’easter is expected to hit the hardest in the northwest and northeast corners of the state. Up to a foot of snow is possible in the northeast corner of the state, with about 10 inches forecasted in the northwest, meteorologists say.

WTNH’s Gil Simmons said precipitation is expected to start between 7 to 9 a.m., with a mix of rain and snow inland that will switch to all wet snow by the afternoon.

“By noon the snow will be collecting,” Simmons said during his Tuesday morning forecast. “By afternoon it will be that wet snow falling at 32 to 34 degrees.” At 1 p.m., the entire state should see snow.

Simmons said a large portion of the state should see about 5 to 8 inches of snow, with the lower range of his forecasted totals more likely.

The snow will continue into the evening and be out of the state between 10 p.m. Wednesday to 1 a.m. Thursday.

On Thanksgiving it will be sunny with temperatures about 40 degrees, Simmons said.

Simmons said the warmer weather Monday and Tuesday means the pavement temperature is going to be mild, making it harder for the snow to stick. He said because it will be about 32 to 34 degrees during the snowfall — instead of in the teens or 20s — Department of Transportation and public works crews should be able to scrape down to the road pretty easily.

During a Tuesday press conference in the state Emergency Operations Center, Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said Wednesday’s snowfall is expected to be at its worst between 2 p.m. and 11 p.m.

“If there’s any chance for people to plan their travel so that they are not on the road during that time, you should do so. Quite frankly, if you could complete your travel plans today, you’d be far better off,” he said.

Later Tuesday, Malloy said in a release that he would partially activate the state Emergency Operations Center at 8 a.m. Wednesday to monitor storm conditions across the state.

“Activating the EOC will allow us to better coordinate a rapid response to any problems that may arise as the storm moves through the state during the busiest travel day of the year,” Malloy said in the statement. “I am urging everyone to factor the weather into their travel plans, to make arrangements to reach their destination (Tuesday night) or Thursday morning if possible, and to use caution and take it slow if you must travel on Wednesday.”

Malloy and public safety commissioner Dora B. Schriro also announced the start of Operation C.A.R.E. (Combined Accident Reduction Effort) by the state police.

“Thanksgiving eve and day are the busiest traffic days of the year,” Schriro said in a statement. “As law enforcement does it’s part in keeping our roads and highways safe, we ask you to do yours by exercising caution and driving safely. Working together, we can keep everyone traveling our roads and highways safe through these preventive enforcement initiatives.”

State troopers will patrol roads and highways across the state and focus on drunk, aggressive and unsafe drivers. Routine patrols will be supplemented with additional troopers, along with sobriety checkpoints and roving DUI patrols. Troopers will also conduct safety spot checks.

Last year there were 562 accidents (92 with injuries and 1 with a fatality), and troopers issued 1,134 speeding tickets, 170 seatbelt violations, 2,548 hazardous moving violations and made 43 DUI arrests.

The storm is expected to cause complications for Nutmeg State residents looking to head elsewhere on the East Coast, as it makes its way up Interstate 95 along the coast and throughout New England.

Millions of travelers are predicted to be on the road and in the sky this Thanskgiving.

“A small deviation in the track could change things dramatically,” said Jeff Masters, chief meteorologist for Weather Underground. The storm, forecast to dump rain along the coast and snow inland, could cause delays along busy Northeast highways and had the possibility of upsetting travel plans at airports throughout the region.

Precipitation was forecast to sweep in from the south Tuesday night into Wednesday morning and exit the region on Thursday morning.

“I would pack your patience,” said Robert Sinclair of AAA New York. “Unfortunately, the storm is scheduled to hit right in the middle of getaway day.”

Masters said coastal cities are likely to mostly receive rain, although meteorologists were keeping a close eye on the rain/snow line. As of Monday, the highest amount of snow was expected to fall in northeastern Pennsylvania, the Catskills of upstate New York and into Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Hampshire and Maine.

Officials at the three major airports in the New York City area — Kennedy, LaGuardia and Newark Liberty — were “monitoring weather forecasts carefully,” and were ready to take action if needed, said Steve Coleman, a spokesman for the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the airports.

All the major U.S. airlines were closely monitoring the situation but have not yet canceled flights or made any other changes.

American Airlines was allowing passengers flying to some Northeast cities on Wednesday to move their flight, for free, to Tuesday or Thursday. Delta Air Lines had a similar waiver for Wednesday flights to the region, but it was letting passengers only reschedule for flights on Thursday or Friday, which might be too late for many travelers.

Sinclair noted that an estimated 41.3 million travelers were expected to hit the nation’s highways for the holiday weekend. That’s a 4.3 percent increase over last year.

He suggested travelers consider traveling on Tuesday or Thursday, instead of Wednesday, if they can.